Bob Baker's The Buzz Factor

Music marketing ideas for DIY artists, managers, promoters and music biz pros

July 20, 2011

Google+ for Music Marketing

Tech geeks the world over have been drooling the past few weeks over Google's new social platform called Google+ (which is simply pronounced "Google Plus").

You may already be using it. But if you're not, don't feel bad. Google+ is so new, it's still officially in "beta" mode and by invitation only. Word has it that it will go fully public within a couple of weeks.

If you're just now learning about it, take a quick look at this page for Google's overview.

Reportedly, 18 million people have signed up in its first few weeks, and it has a lot of prominent bloggers and social media experts buzzing.

Opinions on Google+ range widely, from calling it a "Facebook killer" to asking "Why in the hell do we need another social networking site to manage?"

I'm still getting acquainted with the features myself. And I've seen lots of buzz sites come and go nowhere, like Quora.com. And let's not forget Google Wave, a project that was closed within a year of its launch.

So I'm very cautious about predicting that any new thing will become the next Big Thing. But since it is getting a lot of attention, and since it is powered by the Google machine, I think it is worth starting a Google+ account and at least exploring what all the hoopla is about.

One of the first features you'll notice that sets apart G+ (as all the hipsters refer to it :-) is something called Circles. In essence it's a way to divide the people you keep tabs on into separate groups.

This function is actually nothing new. On Facebook you can create friend list subgroups, but few people use it or even know about it. Twitter also gives you the ability to create lists that display the feeds of people you select.

The difference I see with Google+ is that it places a big emphasis on Circles. And it gives you a more visually appealing, drag-and-drop way to categorize the people you want to follow and interact with.

As the video above explains, when you post updates, you can choose which of your Circles will see them. That way, you can post specific messages just for fans or only for other artists, etc. That is something that sets Google+ apart from Facebook, Twitter, and others.

What are your initial thoughts on Google+? Will you sign up and use it? I welcome your comments.

You would be hard pressed to NOT have heard of Google+, the newest social networking and sharing tool from Google which after one month of existence boasts around 18 million users. Artists are already bombarded with a plethora of tools to help them connect with their fans, but Google+ truly adds some unique features which have great potential for integration into a musicians marketing arsena

I am being stalked from someone on facebook and was pretty bummed about it and then I read a really positive article you posted and it made me feel better. Now I read about this new project from Google and I would say that its and excellent idea. I have often wished that you could organize the people on facebook to avoid socail problems (like stalkers or people that just don't need to know.) Ya great thanks Bob for letting me know. Hope this takes off.

The reason why lists on FB and Twitter aren't very popular is because they didn't start off with them. It was something that was added later. With G+ starting off with Circles from the jump it makes adding people to the circles a lot easier ... as you accept them on your profile or as you find people. It's very hard to go through over a thousand friends on FB or Twitter and organize them.

FREE Music Tips Ezine

Feed Me

What About Bob?

Bob Baker is an author, speaker, teacher, indie musician and former music magazine editor dedicated to showing musicians of all kinds how to get exposure, connect with fans, sell more music, and increase their incomes.